Good Times is a spin-off of Maude, which itself spun off from All in the Family, making it a third-generation Norman Lear production and television's first African-American two-parent family sitcom.

The characters of Florida and Henry Evans originated on Maude, where Florida worked as Maude's housekeeper and Henry was a New York City firefighter; when the spin-off was developed, the family's history was changed to make them a poverty-stricken Chicago family instead of Black middle-class, and Henry's name was changed to James.

Chip Fields was a finalist for the role of Thelma before Bernadette Stanis was cast instead; Fields later appeared in the show as a different character, Penny's abusive mother Lynnetta Gordon.

Haywood Nelson screen tested and was originally hired to play Michael Evans, but was replaced by Ralph Carter, who had more live-audience experience; a young Larry (Laurence) Fishburne briefly filled the role of Michael during early rehearsals while Carter's Broadway contract was being negotiated.

Because Ralph Carter was under contract to the Broadway musical Raisin, early episodes of Good Times carried an onscreen credit reading 'Ralph Carter appears courtesy of the Broadway musical Raisin.'

J.J.'s catchphrase 'Dy-no-mite!' was credited to director John Rich, who insisted Jimmie Walker say it in every episode despite skepticism from Walker and executive producer Norman Lear; it was first delivered at the end of the season 1 episode 'Black Jesus.'

Esther Rolle and John Amos both grew increasingly dissatisfied with the show's shift toward J.J.'s comedic antics, publicly criticizing the character as a negative stereotype; Amos was ultimately fired after season three following heated disagreements with Norman Lear and the writing staff.

After John Amos's departure, producers chose not to recast James Evans and instead killed off the character offscreen in a car accident in the season four premiere 'The Big Move.'

Esther Rolle left after season four but returned for season six on the condition that producers write out the Carl Dixon character and make J.J. more responsible, as she felt his behavior set a poor example for African-American youth and that Florida's romance with the atheist Carl disregarded her devout Christian beliefs.

The gospel-styled theme song was composed by Dave Grusin with lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman, sung by Jim Gilstrap and Motown singer Blinky Williams; the lyrics are notoriously hard to discern, with fans debating whether the line is 'hangin' in a chow line' or 'hangin' in and jivin'.'

Dave Chappelle referenced the theme song's ambiguous lyrics in his 'I Know Black People' sketch on Chappelle's Show, using the misheard line as a quiz question.

A British adaptation titled The Fosters aired on ITV from 1976 to 1977, notable as the first British sitcom written for and starring an all-Black cast, featuring a young Lenny Henry and Norman Beaton.

During its first full season, Good Times was the seventh-highest-rated program in the Nielsen ratings, with more than 25% of American households tuning in weekly, and was one of three top-ten shows about African-American life alongside Sanford and Son and The Jeffersons.

An animated revival titled Good Times: Black Again was released on Netflix in April 2024, executive produced initially alongside Norman Lear, Seth MacFarlane and Stephen Curry, but it received overwhelmingly negative reviews for its animation style, crass humor, and lack of connection to the original series.